It was Leshoure's fourth-straight 100-yard game dating to the
end of the 2009 season.

NIU (1-2) was led by quarterback Chandler Harnish's 117 yards
rushing and 208 passing. He ran for one touchdown and threw for
another.

Illinois offensive lineman Hugh Thornton was hospitalized but
able to move his extremities after being carted off the field in
the third quarter.

In spite of the Illini's 389 total yards, 319 of them on the
ground, Illinois' offense went silent for the third and much of
the fourth quarter. The defense shut down NIU when it looked
like the Huskies might be ready to engineer an upset.

NIU drove to the Illini 46 early in the fourth quarter. On first
down, Harnish scooted through the middle of the Illini defense
for 16 yards, but was stripped of the ball as he went down by
Illinois linebacker Ian Thomas. Defensive back Tavon Wilson
recovered.

NIU had the ball back again minutes later, but the Huskies were
penalized for a delay of game that turned a second down and 20
into a second-and-25 that the Huskies couldn't convert.

The Illini offense then came back to life behind Leshoure and
Scheelhaase.

Illinois took got the ball at its own 27 after NIU's punt.
Leshoure picked up 33 yards on two big carries and Scheelhaase
added 20 on two keepers to drive Illinois to the Huskies'
21-yard line.

Derek Dimke hit a 32-yard field goal to put Illinois up 21-12,
forcing the Huskies to come up with two scores.

They did - a touchdown on an option pass from tailback Jasmin
Hopkins to Landon Cox closed the gap to 21-19 and a late field
goal.

But those points were sandwiched around a Leshoure touchdown
that sealed the game.

The Illini kept that scoring drive alive a fourth-and-1 play at
their own 46 with just under five minutes to play. Instead of
punting, Illinois ran Leshoure between the right guard and
tackle and got the yard.

Leshoure finished off the drive three minutes later with a
29-yard touchdown run and a 28-19 lead.

Saturday was Scheelhaase's first 100-yard rushing game. The
redshirt freshman also threw for 70 yards.

The Illini had six penalties for 60 yards in the game's first
half hour, and they were costly, giving NIU an opening that it
eventually used to take the lead.

On a third-and-3 from the Illinois 37, Harnish dropped back to
pass, pulled the ball down and ran left, gliding between
Illinois linebacker Martez Wilson and cornerback Travon Bellamy
on the way to the end zone. The extra was no good, but Harnish's
37-yard touchdown gave the Huskies a 12-7 lead with just under
four minutes to play in the first quarter

But penalties cut both ways for Illinois on the drive they used
to retake the lead.

A false start by tackle Jack Cornell forced Illinois into a
first-and-15 play at the NIU 45, and three plays later, on a
third-and-14, Huskies cornerback Kiaree Daniels gave away NIU's
edge, running into Illini receiver Darius Millines as the ball
sailed over both their heads. The 15 yards for an interference
set Illinois up at the NIU 29 with a first down. Six plays
later, running back Jason Ford sped around the left end of the
Huskies line, sliding past linebacker Devon Butler and just
inside the pylon.

Scheelhaase's two-point conversion gave Illinois the 18-12 edge
it carried into the half.

Thornton, a 6-5, 310-pound sophomore from Oberlin, Ohio, went
low to block for Leshoure on a play late in the third quarter
and appeared to drop his head as he made contact.

He lay still as he was strapped to a stretcher and left the
field on a cart after Illinois medical staff worked with him for
several minutes.